1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lock assembly, and more particularly to a lock assembly that can be adjusted to fit with different keys conveniently and quickly.
2. Description of Related Art
A traditional lock assembly is only applied with a specific key and cannot fit with different keys. To use with different keys, an old lock cylinder should be replaced with a new one, such that the traditional lock assembly is not versatile in use.
To make a lock assembly fitting with different keys, a US patent application with publish number 2005/0011242 (referring to '242 application hereafter), entitled to “Rekeyable Lock Assembly” is provided. The '242 application comprises a plug body and carrier sub-assembly mounted in a lock cylinder body. The carrier sub-assembly is mounted on the plug body and comprises a carrier and a plurality of racks.
To adjust the lock cylinder to fit with different keys, an original corresponding key is inserted into the plug body and the plug body is rotated 90° in clockwise to make the carrier slidable in the lock cylinder body between two positions. A tool is then inserted into the plug body to push the carrier with the racks to move in an axial direction and disengage from pins in the lock cylinder body. After removing the original corresponding key and the tool from the plug body, a new key is inserted into the lock cylinder body and is rotated in counterclockwise to make the racks engaging the pins again. Consequently, the lock assembly can fit with the new corresponding key.
However, a specific tool is need for adjusting the lock assembly of the '242 application, and the tool is not an inherent part of the lock assembly. Therefore, the adjustment of the lock assembly of the '242 application is troublesome and time-consuming.
To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention tends to provide a lock assembly to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.